Articles - The Moscow Times

Support The Moscow Times!

Contribute today

Telegram Surpasses WhatsApp Traffic Volume in Russia

The private messaging app Telegram has for the first time overtaken WhatsApp in traffic volume in Russia, the Vedomosti business daily reported...

clearing the ranks

Russia’s Ruling Party Uses AI to Purge Anti-War Voters – Reports

Russia’s ruling party is purging its ranks of opponents to the war in Ukraine with AI and algorithms that track voters’ social media activity...

proceed with caution

Russian Social Network VKontakte Adds Warnings to all LGBT Content

Russia’s largest social network VKontakte has started labeling LGBT-themed pages on its site with warnings that they may violate draconian legislation...

inciting violence

TikTok Videos Glorifying Wagner Mercenary Group Viewed By Millions – Watchdog

TikTok kept up hundreds of videos that promote and glorify violent acts allegedly committed by Russian mercenary group Wagner despite their direct violation...

Russia Eyes Domestic Alternatives to Instagram, TikTok, Zoom

Russian software developers have submitted early versions of homemade alternatives to Instagram, TikTok and Zoom, the RBC news website reported Thursday...

Elon Musk in Row With Zelensky Over Russia 'Peace Plan'

U.S. billionaire Elon Musk was embroiled in a social media spat with Ukrainian officials including President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday over his ideas...

Apple App Store Pulls Russian Social Network VKontakte

Apple on Wednesday confirmed that it removed popular Russian social network VKontakte from its App Store globally due to sanctions imposed by Britain. The...

Amid Official Silence, Russian Soldiers’ Families Get Answers From the Enemy

Ukraine’s “IT Army” spreads information and photos of deceased Russian military personnel on social media to raise awareness of losses.

Russian Search Engines Remove Independent Media, ‘Extremist’ Instagram Results

Yandex and Mail.ru said Monday they have stopped giving out the search results in line with Russian legislation.

Navalny Urges West to Breach ‘Putin’s Propaganda’ Via Social Media

Russia tripled funding for state media in January-March this year.

Twitter Moves to Limit Reach of Russian Government Accounts

Twitter said official Russian government accounts will not be shown to users across all categories of the app, including in searches.

an app's an app

Russia Unveils Domestic Instagram Competitor ‘Rossgram’

The resemblance is uncanny.

moderation spat

YouTube Accused of 'Censorship' in Russia

Fears mount that the U.S. company maybe next in line for a ban in Russia.

'directed against Russia'

Russia Bans Instagram and Facebook as 'Extremist'

Authorities accused U.S. tech giant Meta of tolerating "Russophobia" during the conflict in Ukraine.

Free flow of information

The Battle to Keep Russia's Internet Free

With web access being squeezed from the inside and the outside, many experts are now calling for the West to take a different approach.

bracing for impact

For Russia's Small Businesses, Instagram Ban Deals a Huge Blow

Already facing the economic shock of sanctions, Russia's entrepreneurs have now lost a critical means of running their businesses.

blocked platform

Instagram No Longer Accessible in Russia

Moscow has accused its parent company Meta of allowing calls for violence against Russians, including the military, on its platforms.

'psychological health'

Russian Bloggers Bid Tearful Farewell to Instagram

Russia's media regulator Roskomnadzor said this week that Instgram was being taken down for allowing posts urging violence against Russians.

'illegal calls'

Moscow Opens Case Against Meta for Calling for 'Murder' of Russians

The General Prosecutor's Office also requested that the internet giant be branded "extremist" and called for Instagram to be blocked.

Invasion carve-out

Facebook Eases Rules to Allow Violent Speech Against 'Russian Invaders'

Facebook and other US tech giants have moved to penalize Russia for the attack on Ukraine, and Moscow has also moved to block access to the leading social...

View more articles